North Carolina

Biden campaign chair: Florida not a battleground but ‘bullish’ on North Carolina

Published

1 year ago

June 24, 2024

Biden campaign chair: Florida not a battleground but ‘bullish’ on North Carolina

WASHINGTON ― The chair of President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign said she does not consider Florida a battleground state in the 2024 election but is “bullish” on winning a different state that Donald Trump carried the last election − North Carolina.

The Biden campaign aggressively talked up Florida being in play for Biden after the state’s Supreme Court in March upheld Florida’s strict abortion laws and also cleared the way for a referendum guaranteeing the right to an abortion to go before Florida voters on the November ballot.

But in an interview with Puck News published Monday, Jen O’Malley Dillon, the campaign’s chair, said, “No,” when asked directly whether she sees Florida as a battleground state.

Florida, with 30 electoral votes up for grabs, last voted Democratic in a presidential election in 2012, when President Barack Obama edged Republican Mitt Romney by less than 1 percentage point. It’s shifted red in the two elections since. Trump, the former president, carried Florida over Hillary Clinton 48.6%-47.4% in 2016, and he expanded the margin of victory to 3.3 percentage points over Biden in 2020.

In a statement to USA TODAY, the Biden campaign insisted the president can carry Florida in November and touted recent campaign investments in the state − including television ads running this week − even if the Sunshine State isn’t among top battlegrounds.

The Biden campaign, which has 28 staffers working in Florida after making an additional 20 hires this month, will have 13 offices across Florida by the end of the week. Biden visited Tampa, Fla. in April to discuss access to abortion and Vice President Kamala Harris gave remarks in Jacksonville, Fla. in May.

“Florida is in play for President Biden and Democrats up and down the ballot,” Dan Kanninen, the Biden campaign’s battleground states director, said in a statement. “The president has a strong story to tell on the issues that matter most to Floridians, which is why our campaign continues to scale up our presence and investments into the state.”

More: Is Florida now in play for Biden? 3 takeaways for 2024 from court’s abortion rulings

The most heavily contested states of the 2024 campaign are six swing states that Biden won in 2020: the so-called “Blue wall” states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as Georgia, Arizona and Nevada.

The Biden campaign has circled North Carolina, which Biden lost by 1.3 percentage points to Trump in 2020, as a prime possible pick-up − and invested heavily there − while the Trump campaign has talked about flipping two Biden states to expand the map: Virginia and Minnesota.

“We have multiple paths to victory,” O’Malley Dillon told Puck News, referring to the 270 electoral votes to secure victory, later emphasizing the Tar Heel State in her interview. “I am bullish on North Carolina, and I don’t f— around in saying that, because I was bullish on Arizona (four years ago) and that’s because we looked at it very closely.”

More: The next Georgia? Biden campaign targets North Carolina to reshape 2024 electoral map

Biden flipped historically red Arizona into the Democratic column in 2020, becoming the first Democrat to win the state since Bill Clinton in 1996.

Why so bullish on North Carolina?

North Carolina, which last voted Democratic in 2008 and has 16 electoral votes, is attractive for Biden and Democrats for several reasons.

Biden 2020 loss to Trump in North Carolina was the smallest margin of all the states he lost. And North Carolina’s booming suburbs with college-educated voters around Charlotte and Raleigh’s “Research Triangle,” combined with its sizable Black population, is a similar formula that put Georgia, once a reliably red state, in play for Democrats.

“We lost it by just 1.3 percentage points in 2020 and we did not play there, number one. Number two, obviously, there’s some element of demographics, but I don’t believe that’s enough,” O’Malley said of North Carolina.

O’Malley Dillon, who was campaign manager during Biden’s 2020 run, above all pointed to “extreme laws” that have passed the Republican-controlled North Carolina, including new abortion restrictions, and a “beyond-extreme candidate running for governor,” referring to Mark Robinson, North Carolina’s Republican nominee for governor.

Democrats believe the state’s new abortion law, which bans most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, will help energize their base. And they believe Biden can benefit from the candidacy of Robinson, a firebrand Republican lieutenant governor with a trail of controversial statements. Robinson is running against Josh Stein, North Carolina’s Democratic attorney general, in the race to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.

“If you put all those pieces together … we really see that (North Carolina) is in play,” O’Malley Dillon said.

Trump currently leads Biden in North Carolina by 5.8 percentage points, according to the Real Clear Politics average of polls. Trump leads Biden in Florida by 7.6 percentage points, according to polling averages.

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

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North Carolina

NC children of disabled veterans see expanded cuts to scholarships

Published

2 hours ago

November 24, 2025

Press Room

NC children of disabled veterans see expanded cuts to scholarships

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) — A state scholarship aimed at giving the children of disabled veterans a chance at a college education is facing budget cuts, leaving students wondering what’s next.

In June, ABC11 reported that the North Carolina Scholarship for Children of Wartime Veterans was cutting its program for future applications for children of disabled veterans in Tier 2, which covers veterans 20-90% disabled.

Now, ABC11 has learned that cuts are going a step further. Current scholars are learning their benefits will be cut beginning the spring semester, prorated by 25%.

Victoria Morales still remembers learning her UNC dreams would become a reality thanks to her dad’s service. Her dad is fully disabled.

To lawmakers. I would say fulfill your promise. We, the people, are being affected by this. And this is real.

– William Dishmon, student, son of a veteran

“He was relieved that his service actually meant something for his kids,” she said. “Giving that amount of time to something, believing so hard in your government and so hard in the things it can do for you, be promised that your children will be taken care of, and then when you’re daughter’s almost done, it’s just over now.”

The cut for current scholars is leaving students and their families figuring things out, including William Dishmon and his dad.

“He had to quit his job, and it was hard for him to find, you know, a lower-stress job for him. But it was a big impact on our family,” Dishmon said.

Isabella McGee’s sister couldn’t get the scholarship because of the cuts to future scholarships, and now she’s wondering if she can finish nursing school with the scholarship she has.

“Honestly, it’s just the uncertainty because we don’t know what the next semester’s going to look like, we don’t know what senior year’s going to look like, and that just puts an excess stressor on our life on top of being a student,” McGee said.

In the meantime, students had a message for lawmakers: To not turn their backs on those who served.

“To lawmakers. I would say fulfill your promise. We, the people, are being affected by this. And this is real. This is a real situation that will affect multiple students across North Carolina,” Dishmon said.

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North Carolina

55 new troopers graduate from North Carolina State Highway Patrol training

Published

20 hours ago

November 23, 2025

Press Room

55 new troopers graduate from North Carolina State Highway Patrol training

CARY, N.C. (WTVD) — The North Carolina State Highway Patrol celebrated the graduation of 55 new troopers.

The ceremony was held at Shepard’s Church in Cary. The 166th Basic Highway Patrol School graduates completed a rigorous 15-week training program covering firearms, vehicle operations, crash investigation, emergency response, physical fitness, de-escalation, and state law.

Chief Justice Paul Newby administered the oath of office, while Governor Josh Stein, the guest speaker, commended the graduates for their dedication to public service.

“It takes a special person to work in law enforcement,” Stein said. “I thank each of you for your commitment to protecting the public and will continue to advocate for the pay and respect law enforcement officers deserve.”

Colonel Freddy L. Johnson Jr., commander of the State Highway Patrol, praised the graduates for their determination and character.

“Their willingness to earn the title of Trooper reflects their desire to serve the communities of this state,” he said.

The new troopers will begin their field training on December 10 at their assigned duty stations.

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North Carolina

Lincoln County man sentenced for 2023 murder of girlfriend’s mother

Published

2 days ago

November 22, 2025

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Lincoln County man sentenced for 2023 murder of girlfriend’s mother

LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — A Lincoln County man was sentenced this week for the death of a 63-year-old woman in October of 2023.

Michael Steven Ricker has been charged with the death of Lesa Armstrong Rose, his girlfriend’s mother. He was also out on bond at the time for shooting and injuring her father.

He pled guilty to a charge of second-degree murder, amended from the original charge of first-degree murder.

Riker was sentenced to 397 to 489 months in the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections with 760 days credit for time served.

In related charges from Catawba County that will run concurrent with the Lincoln County charges are 84 to 113 months for discharging a firearm into an occupied property and 96 to 125 months for attempted first-degree murder.